Traditional Farming Livelihoods

Even today, we farm with a plough and oxen and earn our livelihood. Since ancient times, our ancestors have ploughed fields with a plough and oxen, and sow only the seeds preserved at home, such as kurthi, sawa, medo, and mijhri.

— Ram Kumari

We sow with great effort without irrigation, and cultivate crops by plowing with oxen and a plow. We save seeds for many years, which come in handy.

— Rupesh Maravi · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

In our village, earlier, people used to cultivate fields with ploughs and oxen and worked very hard. At that time, they would sow Kodo, Sawa, Medo, and Mizri, and grow them without fertilizer. They used to sustain themselves with that, from which individuals...

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Sawa, Medo, Mijhri are our traditional crops, which our ancestors used to cultivate by plowing with bullocks and a plough. They consumed these crops throughout the year and saved seeds in their homes for the next year's sowing. We still practice farming today.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

They farm using plows pulled by oxen, practicing traditional farming where they sow and grow old varieties, and now they also sow some new hybrid varieties.

— Ram Maravi · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

From the very beginning, we cultivate a second crop without irrigation using old methods and traditional seeds. The method of storing these seeds is also traditional, and our fields are ploughed using bullocks.

— Rupesh Maravi · Balaghat, Madhya Pradesh

Yes, on our fallow fields, even without irrigation, we grow other crops and use traditional seeds, ploughing and sowing with oxen according to old methods.

— Rupesh Maravi · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

We do farming with ploughs and bullocks, cultivating crops like saawa, medo mijhri, and pulses such as arhar (pigeon pea), urad (black gram), and baturi. Nowadays, government seeds for pulses are also available. We also cultivate crops like chana (chickpea), matar (pea), and masoor (lentil).

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

In ancient times, we used to cultivate with ploughs. We used to cultivate black gram, horse gram, green gram, paddy, etc.

— RINA BEHERA · Sundargarh, Odisha

We cleared and tilled land in the forest to create our farms, and today we continue to cultivate that same land. Previously, we used to plough with bullocks and a plough, but now we also use tractors for tilling. Furthermore, pigeon pea (arhar) cultivation can be done without water.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

In our home, we do farming using a plow and oxen. We cultivate the fields with them and also earn our livelihood through them. We farm all day; the plow operates, and by evening, it helps us sustain ourselves. This is how we carry out our agricultural work.

— Ram Kumari

Before, all of us tribals used to plow the fields with a plow and bullocks. We would sow medo mujri and also kurthi, which was very nutritious food. It was sown without fertilizer and would grow readily.

— Babulal Ayam · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Before, we all used to farm with plows and oxen, and we also threshed paddy with them. Even for irrigation, we used oxen via a Persian wheel.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Our plows and bullocks till the fields, we sow millet, maize, make furrows, and plant small seeds, and also save seeds for the next year. This is a legacy from our ancestors, which we still have today and which we utilize.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

In earlier times, people cultivated crops like Sawa, Medon, and Mijhari using ploughs and oxen. They also relied on oxen for applying various treatments to their fields. They cultivate Batri, a type of pulse, and for pigeon pea, if it receives water just once, a good harvest is achieved. Batri is sown after the rice harvest, requires no irrigation, and the crop ripens on its own.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

We are a tribal community, we farm using ploughs and bullocks, and we sustain our lives. We clear forests and bushes to make fields, and we cultivate sawa, medo, mijhri, and maize, which were grown by our ancestors, and we also preserve their seeds.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

We farm using the old method.

— Amar Lal Dhurwey · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

Our ancestors used to farm with plows.

— Batakrushna Sahoo

Traditional agriculture

— Common Ground · Phiringia, Kandhamal, Odisha

Traditional agriculture

— KRUSHNA KHILLO · Semiliguda, Koraput, Odisha

In ancient times, what kind of methods did your people use for farming? So, they farmed with plows and used oxen for farming.

— Rajesh Mallik · Boudh, Odisha

We farm using traditional methods.

— Sunil oraon · Bero, Ranchi, Jharkhand

Earlier, we used to farm with plows and oxen. Today, it's the age of machines, and we farm using them. However, we often face economic problems, due to which we have to go to the city separately to earn a living.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Farming

— Sunita Kumari · Ghorawal, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

We have been cultivating without irrigation from the very beginning, plowing and sowing with bullocks. If the rainwater falls properly, then it's good; otherwise, I consider myself a gambler.

— Rupesh Maravi · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

I cultivate pulse crops without irrigation. We save pulse seeds, among which horse gram, black gram, and pigeon pea are the oldest varieties. We save these seeds for cultivation every year. Our ancestors used to cultivate using manure and traditional ploughs.

— DASHARATH SINGH

In earlier times, what method did people use for farming? The answer is, they used to farm by applying fertilizer with a plough.

— Niranjan Lauria · Boudh, Odisha

Farming and agriculture

— Sunita Kumari · Ghorawal, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Tall people farm by ploughing with oxen and grow crops that are very useful and chemical-free.

— Ram Maravi · Dindori, Madhya Pradesh

Record it in 15 seconds. Yes, I practice traditional farming. I irrigate my fields with my oxen, plow them, and use organic manure from my animals.

— Vasudev Katara · Bichiwara, Dungarpur, Rajasthan

In their olden times, marriages and farming took place. Farming was recently done with bullocks, and corn was cultivated in farming.

— bachcha lal · Shahganj, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Our fathers and grandfathers used to cultivate traditional crops earlier, fertilizing them with cow dung, and grew pulses like moong, urad, kulthi, along with millets such as ragi and bajra.

— Parikshit Majhi

Agriculture farming

— Sunita Kumari · Ghorawal, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

We still have traditional seeds like Kodo, Kutki, Maize, Sorghum, Kulthi, Arhar, etc., which we sow using old methods even without irrigation facilities. Even then, our crops ripen.

— Rupesh Maravi · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

We will do farming.

— Manjusha Marko · Dudhi, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

We do traditional farming. We save rain-fed seeds and cultivate crops like sorghum and chickpea.

— Vijay kanesh · Alirajpur, Madhya Pradesh

In the past, farming was done with plows made of wood, but nowadays machines are being used.

— Amar Lal Dhurwey · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

We do farming. We save some seeds beforehand and then cultivate. This way, we get many crops, including green gram, black gram, and pigeon pea.

— Ulapi Sahu · Balangir, Odisha

From the time of our ancestors, they used to cultivate with a plow. Immediately after paddy cultivation, they would grow mustard, groundnuts, horse gram, black gram, and green gram. Our subsequent generations have forgotten this practice.

— RINA BEHERA · Sundargarh, Odisha

Traditional agriculture and heritage

— KRUSHNA KHILLO · Semiliguda, Koraput, Odisha